Hi all, I was reading some of the content on the link provided in the following article, and I found the features of the new handwriting ability in IOS7 simply amazing, and features I can't wait to try--especially when in noisy environments and the new password entry feature. Do yourself a favor and take a couple of minutes to read the details of what this feature can do for you. Note: I've only pasted a small sample of what is in the link below, so don't forget to click and read the entire article.
Maccessibility ยป Review - iOS 7 and VoiceOver http://maccessibility.net/2013/09/18/review-ios-7-and-voiceover/ The Pen Is Mightier Than the Keyboard With the popularity of apps like Fleksy and MBraille, it is clear that some users find text entry on the software keyboard cumbersome or difficult, especially in certain situations. I must confess, I do not use either of these apps, as I have found my speed on the onscreen keyboard to be satisfactory, and use dictation when typing is inconvenient. That being said, Apple has provided a new feature to VoiceOver users that is a pretty impressive alternative to typing your text entry. Tucked away, hidden at the bottom of the option rotor settings in VoiceOver's settings, is an option simply called "Handwriting". When entering text, you can select "Handwriting" from the rotor, and then use the screen as a canvas to literally draw printed characters. By default it starts in the category of lower case letters, but also includes recognition for uppercase letters, numbers, and punctuation. Simply draw a letter as it appears in printed form, and it is entered into the text field. Three-finger swipes up and down will change the category of character type you are entering. A two-finger swipe right will input a space, and a two-finger swipe left will backspace. If you know the shapes of printed characters, a little practice will find you entering letters at a pretty good clip in this mode. Having already mastered a pretty speedy technique with keyboard entry on my iOS devices, it has not yet overtaken my typing speed, but I can see where it might eventually, and certainly could for others who have trouble with keyboard entry. There are also occasions when typing is not optimal, such as in noisy surroundings, and this would definitely be handy in those situations. The great thing about doing text entry in this way, is that it limits the learning curve for those who are already familiar with the shapes of printed letters to almost zero. For those who are not, this is a great excuse to learn. You can also enter your pass code, if you keep one on your device, using the handwriting feature, and it will even default to numbers for this purpose. The Handwriting feature has other uses and modes, too. If turned on while you're on the home screen, you can start writing letters on the screen, and a list of apps beginning with those letters appears. Apps in this list can be anywhere on your device, and are not limited to those on the current screen or in the current folder. Use a two-finger swipe up or down to move through the list, and double-tap, as usual, to activate the app you want. Those who are familiar with the Item Chooser on Mac will find this functionality very familiar. When in web content, such as in Safari, Handwriting mode has yet another use. Write a letter corresponding to a rotor option, and VoiceOver switches to that form of navigation. For example, writing "H" switches to Headings, and two-finger swipes up and down will move you through the headings on the page. Draw an "L", and now you are navigating links. This will be particularly nice for users who keep a lot of items in their rotor and want a faster way to move through various HTML element types. The accuracy of the recognition of this mode is superb, and with just a little practice, many users are likely to find they enjoy this form of text entry. Hats off to Apple for incorporating this in such a fluid and intuitive way. Joseph -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the "VIPhone" Google Group. Post a new message to VIPhone by emailing viphone@googlegroups.com. Search and view the VIPhone archives by visiting http://www.mail-archive.com/viphone@googlegroups.com/. Reach the VIPhone owner and moderators by emailing viphone+ow...@googlegroups.com. Unsubscribe and leave VIPhone by emailing viphone+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. More VIPhone group options can be found by visiting http://groups.google.com/group/viphone?hl=en. --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "VIPhone" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to viphone+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
